I leapt to my feet and gazed at the surrounding glass walls to my right. The city sprawled underneath. I never felt so young and alive. Soon I would descend to its depths and explore the city until my legs stopped working. I couldn’t recall a time when I experienced such bliss that I couldn’t stop grinning. Well, that wasn’t true. Some of the happiest times of my life were when Natalie and I hung out during summer vacation. I biked down State Street to her house every day so we could play in her big backyard and explore the woods behind it. There was an inexplicable joy that came with freedom from parents or school, with exploring the world on our bikes until the sun dipped below the horizon. I felt it now. My eyes misted as I remembered how wonderful it had been—I had completely forgotten about it until now.
It was five in the morning and a slow stream of cars and taxis were making their way down the streets. I squinted and tried to locate Big Ben or the Tower of London, but I couldn’t recognize anything.
After a moment of hesitation, I decided to find Luke. It was extremely early, but maybe he was awake. I found a robe with his name in the armoire and walked around the cool tiles barefoot. I wandered into the silent kitchen, looking outside to gaze at the panorama of the city. Was every inch of this hotel room bordered by glass? I continued walking forward, not really paying attention to where I was going.
BAM! My head smacked right into something solid and damp. A pair of hands took my arms and I saw Luke looking incredibly contrite, dressed only in a towel wrapped around his waist.
“Jessica!” He released my arms. “Are you alright?”
My nose was stinging a bit. Holy crap, I thought as I studied his perfectly carved chest and arms. My chest felt feverish and I was very aware of how hot my face and neck were. His damp hair flattened against his neck. “Uh—wow. You’re in really good shape.”
Ugh. Once again, I was at the mercy of my exhausted brain.
“Oh,” he smiled and briefly looked down at himself. “Well, I try.”
Please tell me there will be some public event in the future that will require him to take his clothes off. My hand flew to my hair absentmindedly and I twirled a strand around my finger. “Suddenly, I feel like I should work out. I mean—I’m sorry for bumping into you. I was distracted.”
The smell of his body wash hung like a musky cloud around him; it was intoxicating. He looked down at me with a seductive, shit-eating grin as he crossed his arms over his chest and studied me. The bastard knew how hot he was and he wasn’t ashamed of flaunting it. A guy like him—how did he keep his ego in check?
Stop twirling your hair, idiot! I immediately snapped my arm to my side and resolved to keep my hands still. It was incredibly hard to keep my gaze fixed on his eyes; they wanted to wander down his chest to the towel precariously wrapped around his waist, revealing trim abs and a sprinkling of dark hair that led straight to his—
Luke cleared his throat. Mortified, I glanced back to his widening grin. He definitely noticed me checking him out.
“I was thinking that we could explore London today. I have meetings in the afternoon, but I could meet you afterwards.”
I can’t hear you when your clothes are off. Somehow, though, my brain picked up on “explore London” and “today.” The excitement seared through my veins like caffeine. I couldn’t wait to go out there. “Sure, I’d love that.”
“It’s a bit early to go out, but why don’t you get yourself ready while I answer some emails?”
“Okay.”
He walked around me with a small smile playing on his lips. For a moment, he looked like he wanted to add something but he changed his mind at the last second and shook his head, laughing a bit to himself.
Beaming, I practically skipped to the bathroom, which was more the size of a locker room. The tiles were heated and I sighed in pleasure as I walked bare-footed, gazing at the gleaming porcelain sinks and the glass shower, which still had a sprinkling of water on the walls. I could imagine Luke showering in a fog of steam, his rippled body hanging out briefly to grab the powder-white towel on the rail. For a brief moment, I envisioned us showering together and I nearly gasped out loud. My legs were wrapped around his powerful waist as he held me up in his arms and drove into me, my back against the shower wall. I could feel the stab of pleasure radiating up my thigh, glowing in the warmth between my legs.
The shower heated in seconds and I stepped into the hot blast of water, the knots in my shoulder melting away. It was already stocked with a myriad of products. I lathered myself up in a perfumed steam and imagined Luke’s hands gripping my waist, his neck bending down to kiss my naked flesh.
A thrill of exhilaration and fear rippled through my body. It was hard to think about sex without thinking about my trauma. Sex still frightened me as much as it enticed me. I shook my blonde head violently. It didn’t matter right now. I wasn’t going to be having sex with Luke, even if we had amazing chemistry.
As I toweled myself off, I realized that the bathroom didn’t come equipped with hairbrushes. I had to return to my suitcase. I let my wet hair cascade down my shoulders and left the bathroom dressed in nothing but a towel wrapped firmly around my body. Anxiety stabbed my chest as I peeked around the corner and saw him in the living room. Let’s see him react to me.
Luke was sitting on the couch with his laptop, fully dressed. A phone was against his ear. I walked across his vision and inwardly smiled when I noticed a lull in his speech. I glanced back casually and saw that Luke was staring directly at me unabashedly. Naked desire shone all over his face, in the way that his mouth hung half-open and the white-knuckled fingers clutched his phone. A moment later, Luke snapped back to his conversation.
“Yes, sorry. As I was saying…”
I walked towards the bathroom with my toiletry bag in my hand and felt his eyes following me back. I smirked to myself in the mirror as I applied my makeup in the bathroom. He thinks he’s so great. He was great. Maybe I am, too.
“Ahem.”
The eyeliner flew out of my hand as a face suddenly materialized in my mirror. I glanced to my right and screamed, knocking several tins of makeup off the sink. Luke was standing in the doorway, his arms crossed over his chest and a frown plastered over his face.
“What are you doing?” I shrieked as I bent over to pick them up. “I could have been naked!”
“Yes, how horrible that would be,” he drawled.
Something had changed between us. I didn’t like the accusatory stare in his eyes or the aggressive way he blocked my exit.
“I know what you’re trying to do and I don’t like it,” he continued.
A small shock rippled through my body. He thinks I’m up to something? I looked around the room, searching for evidence that I had done something wrong. Had I used his hair products against his permission? Bewildered, I threw my hands up. “I have no idea what you’re—”
“If you get me to do something with you, you could sue for sexual harassment.”
The accusation stunned me for a moment, then I threw back my head and laughed at how ridiculous that sounded. Luke flinched at my laughter echoing in the tiled room. “That’s the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard. You’re already paying me ten grand a month. Why would I get greedy? That’s stupid.”
Still shaking with laughter, I shook my head and returned to the mirror to apply my makeup. Luke’s frown reflected in the mirror. Did he seriously believe that I had an ulterior motive?
“C’mon, Jessica. You just walked around the apartment half-naked. Don’t tell me you didn’t expect me to notice that.”
I hung my head, my hair falling like a curtain around my face. He was right, of course. But I didn’t do it so I could screw him over!
“Who was the one who did it first?” I turned around to gaze into Luke’s wide eyes. “I just did the same thing you’ve been doing to me all this time. Admit it. You like the attention.”
Now it was his turn to look surprised. His hand flew to his hair. “What? I didn’t—”
I kne
w I should drop it, but I didn’t. “You’ve been playing with me. Maybe because you like me, but mostly because you like messing around with women. You get off on it.” I didn’t know why I was saying all of this, or why I was suddenly so angry. His wide-eyed refusal to take responsibility rubbed me the wrong way.
“That’s not true,” he said with an edge in his voice. “Though, I’ll admit that the lines can become a little blurred for me.”
Luke looked ashamed. I bit my lip. He’s done so much for me.
“Well, me too,” I said in a thick voice. My cheeks flamed again and I felt frustrated with how little control I had over my body. “I’m not faking any of this.”
His eyes gleamed. “Yes, that’s why I picked you. I don’t know why, but I almost believe you when you say that you wouldn’t sue me.”
Even with his sad smile, I couldn’t get over how handsome he looked. I longed to run my fingers through his thick dark hair, and kiss that vein that jumped in his throat. I put my makeup down and faced him. “Isn’t it exhausting to constantly be on guard with people?”
“Jessica, I’ve been hurt so many times by people I thought I trusted. Virtually everyone has sold a story about me to the press.”
He couldn’t or wouldn’t trust me, but I couldn’t hold it against him even though it hurt. I didn’t know what it was like to be him. “Can I ask you something personal?” Without waiting for a response, I asked it anyways: “Are you lonely?”
He opened his mouth and closed it. He didn’t have to answer; I saw the truth in his eyes. “Yes,” he said. “I suppose I’ve always been.”
Me too. Something expanded in my chest and I wanted to reach forward and touch him, but Luke backed from the doorway and shut the door.
* * *
“Can we use the Tube?”
He looked at me with suppressed annoyance. “We’ll be mobbed if we use the Tube.”
“No, we won’t!”
We were already being followed by a silent, creepy group of paparazzi. I held Luke’s hand and practically skipped down the streets of London. The sky looked like a thick gray blanket that dropped icy sheets of rain on our heads. Luke did his best to keep us dry with his umbrella. The rain didn’t dampen my spirits. I’d probably never get the chance to do walk London’s streets again.
“Oh, come on. Let’s just use it once.” I was dying to experience the city like a real Londoner.
Luke sighed in resignation. “Well, fine.”
We quickly descended the steps into the Piccadilly tube station. Luke shook some change out of his pocket and dumped it into the ticket machine. I took one of the two pieces of paper the machine spat out, then walked through the barrier to the trains. Luke took a quick glance at the tube map before pulling me to the right towards the Bakerloo line.
A slew of tourists and people commuting to work crowded the brick-lined underground. Luke smiled to himself as he bounced on his soles.
“What is it?”
He shook his head, still smiling. “Nothing, this just brings back memories.”
Across the station, a man photographed us. I casually leaned against Luke, who wrapped his arm around my waist automatically. I laid my head against his chest and smiled sweetly as he kissed my head.
“Later tonight, I might meet up with an old friend. You’re welcome to come, of course.”
An old friend? Sounds interesting. “Yeah, I’d like to.” I lifted my head towards his voice and caught his bottom lip. He squeezed my back so that my breasts were flattened against his chest and I could feel his steady heartbeat, while mine raced. I felt the irritating rush of heat in my chest and I couldn’t understand how he could remain so calm. We broke our faces apart, but Luke still held me against him, looking at me as though I was the only girl in the universe.
“Does he know about me?”
“He knows that I’m dating someone. I haven’t told anyone about our arrangement, and I plan on keeping it that way.”
I nodded as a rush of wind soared through the tunnel, whipping my hair around. I unglued myself from Luke’s chest, and we walked over a line of yellow that demanded we Mind The Gap. The train was packed with people and we were sandwiched together. I couldn’t help by laugh a little at the discomfort on Luke’s face.
“Not used to being pressed up against the common folk, are you?” I whispered.
He laughed nervously and quickly glanced around at the people surrounding us. “Jessica,” he whispered. “Someone might hear.”
“No one heard me.”
“It’s just a bit awkward. I’m not used to public transport.”
“I thought you said you took the metro all the time as a kid.”
“That was then.”
Luke held onto the rail with his sleeves, probably to avoid the layer of germs coating it.
“Well, consider it payback for laughing at me on the airplane.”
We transferred to another line and finally arrived at the Westminster station. When we climbed out, Big Ben stood right in front of me like a giant. Even in the overcast weather, the tower shined in a dark gold brilliance. I craned my neck to look at the black hands sitting on a white circle surrounded by a golden ring. The parliament building wrapped around Big Ben. We walked down the street and over the bridge, weaving around tourists to look down at the River Thames snaking through the city. A giant Ferris wheel was northeast of us. Luke leaned over the bridge and watched my fascination with a happy look on his face.
“That’s the London Eye,” he said, pointing to the wheel.
“It’s incredible.”
There was nothing like this where I had grown up. We walked back towards Big Ben, the snarl of traffic shuddering down the streets, the red double decker busses groaning as they passed us. Luke grabbed my arm and pulled me back violently when I almost walked into oncoming traffic. Out of habit, I looked left instead of right.
“Thanks,” I said as bright red patches burned my cheeks. “I’m not used to it yet.”
“Close call.”
I recognized some of the statues in the Parliament Square as we walked around it. I noticed a long line of people outside one of the buildings. A large gothic church stood in front of the square with three bold arches covering the three doors. The one in the middle was the largest, and it was where the line formed. “Is that—?”
“Westminster Abbey? Yes. Do you want to go inside?”
I rubbed my hands together and tried to conceal how much I wanted to go. “Well, only if you don’t mind.”
He rolled his eyes at me and pulled my hand. “C’mon.”
Inside the abbey were vaulted ceilings and high arches with so much detail carved into the stone that I could stare at them for hours. Every surface was covered with marble busts and memorials. Even the floor had them. I squealed in delight when I recognized an author name from my English classes.
“Look—Charles Dickens!”
Luke leaned over and nodded. “Cool,” he said in a tone of voice that suggested boredom instead of fascination. Uniquely decorated chapels tucked into the corners of the abbey were dedicated to different members of royalty.
“You don’t like this stuff, do you?”
He shrugged as we walked around the choir. “It’s all right. I’ve seen it all before—many times on school trips. I’m more of a thrill seeker. I like hang-gliding, parasailing, white-water rafting, steeplechase—that sort of thing.”
I never did any of those things. “What if we went to a soccer match?”
Luke’s face lit up. “Now, you’re talking. Do you like the sport?”
I used to spend my summers with Natalie on the same recreational soccer team. Her parents paid for the annual fee because there was no way in hell my foster parents would have. “I used to play a lot when I was younger. I miss it.”
“Well, we should definitely see a match, then. I’ll ask my friend if he would like to join us.” He had already opened his phone and was searching.
Wow. I guess we have
one thing in common. I mentally praised myself for bringing it up.
I watched as his fingers moved rapidly over his smartphone.
“There’s a match today at Boleyn Ground. It’s West Ham versus Tottenham Hotspur. Oh my God, we have to see it.”
“Can you get tickets?”
He looked at me and smiled as if I had made a joke.
Well, that answers that.
As we walked out of Westminster Abbey, Luke drummed his fingers over his smartphone. “I have meetings this afternoon, but I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to make it. I’ll leave early if I have to. I haven’t been to a football match in ages.”
Luke rubbed his hands together with a manic grin on his face. It was nice to see a gleam of excitement in his eyes instead of his mask of polite amusement. I didn’t argue as Luke called a cab to take him to work, giving the driver explicit directions to take me wherever I wanted.
“The game starts at three o’clock. Best to be there at two-thirty. I’ll call and send a car wherever you are.”
He leaned across the seats and his lips brushed my cheek. When he pulled away, his smile was full of so much warmth that my breath caught in my throat.
“Have a good day, Jessica.”
Luke slid out of the car and gave me a small wave through the window. As soon as he had left the car, I felt the absence of him like a hole in my stomach. I was still looking out the window when the driver cleared his throat. He was staring at me through the rear-view mirror.
“Uh—can you take me to the Tower of London?”
* * *
Breathless, I stepped out of the cab and searched the throng of people for Luke. Hundreds of people wearing the West Ham colors of deep red-purple and blue stood in several security lines outside the stadium. The driver had assured me that Luke would be nearby. At last, I looked through a group of red and blue clad men with rosettes attached to their shirts and recognized his profile. Luke’s dark hard tilted back with laughter. A good-looking man in his twenties stood beside him, his shoulders bent forward and shaking with mirth.
This must be the friend who he was talking about. As if he had heard my thoughts, the man’s eyes rested on me and he gave me a slight nod. Luke turned on the spot and a brilliant smile lit his handsome face. I hitched a smile on my face and walked towards him.
Break (Billionaire New Adult Romance) Page 8